Ousmane Dembele ‘ready to join Chelsea revolution’ if Tuchel agrees to key demand

Will Ford
Reported Chelsea target Ousmane Dembele sat on the bench

Ousmane Dembele is reportedly keen on moving to Chelsea this summer, but wants assurances from Thomas Tuchel before he agrees to a deal at Stamford Bridge.

The 25-year-old is out of contract and will be on the move this window having rejected offers of new deals from Barcelona.


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Tuchel is a big admirer of the forward, describing him as a “crazy talent” during their time together at Borussia Dortmund.

He moved to the Nou Camp in 2017 in a deal worth £138m but has struggled for form and fitness in that time, starting well under half the games in the last three seasons.

The Sun claim Dembele has ‘serious ambitions to win the Premier League title and Champions League’ and is ‘ready to join the Chelsea revolution’.

But the report states that he wants ‘assurances from Tuchel that he will be a Chelsea starter and not subject to strict squad rotation’.

That has been the case at Stamford Bridge since Tuchel’s arrival, with Kai Havertz, Hakim Ziyech, Christian Pulisic, Callum Hudson-Odoi and Timo Werner among those vying for the forward positions.

Former Chelsea full-back Glen Johnson believes it “makes absolute sense” for the Blues to sign Dembele.

“I believe it’s a no-brainer,” Johnson said.

“You’ve got to do some clever business. You can’t just go out and spend top dollar for all the best players.

“If you can get players on the cheap or on a free then it makes absolute sense. You have to think, what would Dembele cost if he had four years left on his contract? So yes, I think if that sort of deal becomes available then you have to jump at it.”

Johnson went onto suggest that it would be “best for both parties” if Romelu Lukaku leaves Chelsea.

“I personally would want to go again next season and prove myself. But I feel with Lukaku that he’s had a whole season to show that sort of courage and he hasn’t.

“I can’t see anything changing next season. If he was the sort of player that can stand up and show courage next season, then I think we would have already seen hints of that.

“I can see him settling elsewhere because if he has that type of courage to bounce back in pre-season, then he should have had the courage to bounce back during his first season. I don’t see him bouncing back next season, so maybe a move somewhere else is best for both parties.”